Archive for May, 2007
The politics of fear
May 24th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
“Through short sighted, fear-mongering and divisive policies, governments are undermining the rule of law and human rights, feeding racism and xenophobia, dividing communities, intensifying inequalities and sowing the seeds for more violence and conflict. The politics of fear is fuelling a downward spiral of human rights abuse in which no right is sacrosanct and no […]
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (1)
Letters from the dead
May 23rd, 2007 by Roger Darlington
This is the story of someone who has composed letters to his family and friends – deposited on a secure web site – only to be read on his death. I have a better idea: tell your family and friends now what you would want them to know from such letters.
Posted in Internet | Comments (6)
Which company is this?
May 22nd, 2007 by Roger Darlington
It is one of the largest employers in the world. Its workforce of around 520,000 employees is present in more than 220 countries and territories on five continents. Almost half the staff work outside the company’s base country. So what is this company? Microsoft? Google? Wal-Mart? Where is it based? The United States? Japan? And […]
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (1)
Look for the hero inside yourself
May 21st, 2007 by Roger Darlington
I’ve spent the day at an international conference on post office networks. The event finished with a session entitled “The challenges of leadership” when were addressed by an inspirational guy called Pete Goss. I confess that I’d never heard of him before, but he turned out to be an old-fashioned hero: a Cornish farmer who […]
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (0)
The price of freedom …
May 20th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
At the conclusion of a challenging article on the infringement on our freedoms under recent Governments, Shami Chakrabarti – Director of Liberty – writes: “One thing is certain, if we as an educated electorate give up as much in the next decade as we did in the last, our grandchildren will not forgive us for […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)
Our enlightened judiciary
May 20th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
“The trouble is I don’t understand the language. I don’t really understand what a website is.” Judge Peter Openshaw, presiding over a trail of three men accused of Internet terror offences – more information here.
Posted in Internet | Comments (2)
Red Arrows over Wembley
May 19th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
Regular readers of NightHawk may recall my posting about my visit to the new Wembley stadium on a community day. Well, today sees the first FA Cup Final at the new venue and one of the special introductory events was a flypast by the Royal Air Force’s Red Arrows. I have no interest in football […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
British spelling vs American spelling
May 19th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
From time to time – such as this week – I receive e-mails from young Americans thanking me for an informative and helpful web site but criticising my poor spelling.They simply have no idea that the spelling of American English and British English is different. It comes as a revelation when I politely point this […]
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (5)
Why we need the Freedom of Information Act
May 18th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
Last autumn, the Government sent up a new Cabinet Committee called Misc 33 to examine the future of the Post Office network. It was chaired by John Prescott, the Deputy Prime Minister. In the week in which the Government has confirmed the closure of 2,500 post offices, the following written exchange took place in the […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (1)
Is Islam a religion of peace?
May 18th, 2007 by Roger Darlington
I would like to think it is – but this video suggests that there is plenty in the Koran to encourage those with a different view. Of course, one could make a similar video about quotes from the Bible and indeed someone has produced a video on various mentions of cruelty:
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (4)